Ford president and CEO Alan Mulally chose CES as the forum to introduce the auto maker’s first zero-emissions vehicle—an all electric version of the Ford Focus.
The company also introduced a MyFord Mobile, an app that will help owners of the all electric Focus, see at-a-glance information on time remaining on the car battery as well distances to local electrical charging stations. The app is clearly conceived as an important part of ensuring customers they can manage charging of an all-electric vehicle and shows Ford’s growing reliance on technology from the consumer electronics arena.
The app also remote starts your vehicle, includes a car finder and offers remote door lock/unlock from the phone.
It shows you the amount of CO2 emissions you’ve spared the environment to date and a dollar value in fuel savings to date.
It also uses Microsoft technology to automatically charge the car during the least costly times of day.
A Ford spokesman said the app is “taking the dashboard mobile.”
Mulally said the electric Focus will be one of 5 electric cars to be offered by Ford by 2012. The car will be able to go up to 84 miles per hour. The word is the new Focus due at the end of the year will go up to about 100 miles on a charge, depending on your driving style.
Ford said it Focus Electric has the lowest charge time of 3 hours.
Best Buy will handle the sales and service of the home charging stations for the Focus Electric.
Source: Ford
